Shades Of Life
by midnight petals
Summary: Ego, hatred, arrogance, and power made the very core of his existence. The soil of his life was dreaded with hate. It was no place for a seed of hope to grow. Love would wither away to dust! His life was different shades of grey! Faith, loyalty, honor and love ceased to exist in his life. He had drowned too deep into the ocean of darkness. The tides of vengeance had washed over him


**This idea came into my mind while reading the latest chapter.**

**My first attempt at ONESHOT.**

**So please be nice!**

** I would appreciate if you guys Review! T_T**

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It was finally over! After so much blood and sweat was lost, it was over. Only the first part of the gory horror war was over. They, The legendary Team 7 had destroyed each and every cell in the Bijju's body. The sky had turned a shade of deep yellow and faded into the crimson and finally dissolved into a purplish sky, spreading the twilight over the blood drenched earth. The ninjas of the five great nations had retreated and so had the enemy. The next few hours would be something to treasure until the morning sky brought with it , the remaining horror and a large amount of kill with it.

There were many shinobis moving in groups, settling down with their friends and family. There were some others who were retrieving the lifeless bodies of their comrades. There were medic-nins tending to the injured. There was the first Hokage-Senju Hasirama, Second Hokage- Senju Tobirama, The third Hokage- Sarutobi Hiruzen , The Fourth Hokage- Namikaze Minato sitting together taking a look around the earth they once lived on, It had most definitely changed since their era. To see the first four Hokages of the village hidden in the leaf , join the battle and fight against the two most powerful ninjas of all times was a shocker! No one knew who resurrected them back to life. There were many who still couldn't believe that they were looking at The God Of Shinobi - Senju Hashirama fighting with them. Another group of people were being healed by the medic-nins. They happened to be the current Kages of the five great ninja nations. Kei- The Mizukage of the Village hidden in the Mist, A- The Rakiage of the village hidden in the clouds, Onoki- The Tsuchikage of the Village hidden in the rocks. Gaara- The Kazekage of the Village hidden in the sand and finally Tsunade- Granddaughter of Senju Hashirama, The Hokage of the Village hidden in the leaf.

He stood there , watching every single group of shinobis without them noticing. He stood on the tallest rock, away from everyone. He turned to look at the specific group of ninja/shinobis. He stared at them for a longer time. He had an amused look on his face. A small smirk marred on his stoic face. He watched that very specific ninja group. They too were drenched in sweat and blood! The scars on their bodies, the third degree burns spoke of how much they fought tooth and nail to protect the ninja world from being taken over by a monster. The war spoke so much of horror and the air was filled with heavy feelings like tension, determination and of being scared. Most of all it spoke of death. As he kept staring, he could see The Konoha 11 and his former senseis smiling and talking. Just to forget the seriousness of the situation, to forget the upcoming horror. It was like they were living the last few moments of their lives together before one of them ended up dead. For an outsider it was like a family which was making the most out of the smallest amount of time left with them. They looked happy. They had no regrets. In fact each one of them had vowed to protect the other member and would die trying for it was their ninja way.

He could see Hyuuga Neji- The byakugan master, The Hyuuga prodigy, his rival/friend helping Tenten- The weapon mistress, set up tents. Rock Lee- The taijutsu master was seen collecting supplies. Their sensei- Miato Gai stood next to them, wearing a proud smile on his face. Next was Team eight. The shy Hyuuga Heiress -Hyuuga Hinata, cousin of Hyuuga Neji had outgrown her shyness. She seemed matured. She was now one of the strongest ninja's of the hidden leaf. Next to her was Aburame Shino- The bug master. He was silent as ever. Now he remembers Shino helping him hold off Kankuro from the hidden sand just so he could get to kill his target- Gara! Even Gara had now grown from his hateful shell to a person with morals and values! He was now the youngest Kage! . Then there was Inuzuka Kiba, the ever so loud dog-boy. His senses as ninja had improved too. His ninja dog -Akamaru had also grown from being a puppy. Their sensei Yuhi Kurenai was now talking to Hinata.

Now he could see Team 8. It was another legendary team. The Ino-Shika-Chou combination never ceased to amaze the enemy. Nara Shikamaru, the lazy genius was seen smoking. He had definitely took off after the sensei of the team- Sarutobi Asuma. He glanced over to Akamichi Chouji. Sure he too had come a long way. He had more to himself than just being a food obsessed kid, he had known since the academy. Then he averted his gaze towards Yamanaka Ino, the girl who was obsessed with him like every other girl. She was so loud and all she ever cared about was her looks. Even she had changed over the years. One of the strongest ninja of the leaf.

He couldn't bring himself to look at the last team that consisted of Konoha 11. A pang of guilt shot like an electric wave through his body while he somehow managed to look at the remaining three people. There stood the sensei of Team 7. Hatake Kakashi- The copy ninja! Nothing had noticeably changed about his appearance. He still had his mask on and it seemed like he never quit the habit of reading Icha Icha Paradise. Kakashi- The only person who he had come to respect and accept as his sensei. the same Kakashi-sensei who had trusted him with every fiber in his body, the same sensei who taught him CHIDORI and had entrusted him to use this powerful jutsu to protect the people who mattered to him. To protect his comrades. But what had he done? developed it further and used it for his own selfish deeds. And finally had let him down!

He averted his gaze towards the blond knuckle-headed loud mouthed ninja. This blond , who happened to be his best friend/ rival had come a long way from being the dead last of the class. He and Uzumaki Naruto had walked the path of darkness together yet in a different way. Naruto had understood him very well. All those years ago he would never accept Naruto to be his equal and today it was just the very opposite. Naruto had found his way out of the darkness while he was still dwelling on the past and had decided to drown deeper into the ocean of darkness. Naruto was the one who hadn't given upon him and still believed there was good in him. This was the very same person who told him that he would bring him back home no matter. This was the person who trained under one of the legendary sannin- Jiraiya. The person who followed him to the ends of the world. The person who still believed in him. He didn't want to dwell on Naruto for a min longer. If he did, there would be things he would feel which he had suppressed in the depths of his heart.

Finally he stared at the last member of Team 7. This girl with pink hair who was teased for the abnormal hair color, the girl who had given up her friendship with her best friend Ino just because she had a crush on him too, the girl who was smart, the girl who had jumped her bones when she was assigned the same team as his, the girl who kept the balance of the team had now trained under the legendary sannin- the fifth Hokage- Senju Tsunade. It had shocked him to see how much progress she had made. Haruno Sakura was another person who had not given up on him. Sure she had bugged him to go on dates with him while they were younger and often told him she liked him very much. She was the weakest link of the team who was in constant need to be protected during missions and he was the one to carry the burden of protecting her. The only person who was waiting near the bench that stood towards the exit of the village. How she knew he was going to leave the village was beyond him. That night she had begged him not to leave, she had cried, told him revenge would never bring him happiness, offered him a chance at happiness, reminded him of the memories they made as team 7, asked her to take her with him and most of all she confessed her undying love to him. She had grown out of the mere crush and had fallen too deep in love with him. He never treated her right and always ended up calling her weak and annoying. Most of all she reminded him of the life he could have had. The Sakura now he stared at seemed to have grown out of her childish antics and had become a great shinobi and one of the top med-nins of the leaf. It amused him to no end. Who would have thought she would change so much over the years. She was named after a delicate flower and it contradicted her personality so much!

He now sighed. He looked at the dark sky that enveloped everyone like a blanket. It seemed like the night sky was protecting the people from the bright morning sky that would only add upon the terror. What had he done with his life? Where did he stand now? He had to find answers to so many of it. He, Uchiha Sasuke- The sole survivor of the Uchiha massacre, the sharingan wielder , the first member of Team 7 had devoted his entire life on revenge. He left behind his team , Konoha 11, his village in search of power. He went to one of the legendary sannin for help -Orochimaru- The traitor of the hidden leaf, the one who killed the third Hokage, the one who tired to take over leaf, the one who left his team that consisted of the Third Hokage , Jiraiya and Tsunade in search of immortality. He now wonders if it was worth it. Sure he did accomplish his goal of killing his elder brother Uchiha Itachi- The man who slaughter-ed his entire clan in one night, only to learn that his gentle , kind older brother took disgrace in the place of honor . Hatred in the place of love just to maintain peace. Now that he had killed Itachi, he should be satisfied yet he felt hollow.

For the first time in his life he had showed emotions was when he came to know that Konoha-The village hidden in the leaf, the council of leaf was the one who had ordered Itachi to slaughter his entire clan. Itachi had become a criminal to protect the peace of the village, to avoid another war that his clan had planned so has to take over leaf. At that point he decided to destroy Konoha. Cuz he thought that every one in that village lived from the sacrifice of his brother's life. He had decided that they had no right to live. His hatred had consumed him even more. He had become too cold and he had become blood thirsty and lesser human. All of Konoha needed to know what Itachi did for them, of course the council would never speak of it.

Soon realization hit him like a ton of bricks. If he destroyed Konoha, it would be like going against everything his brother did to protect the village. He didn't know if he should avenge his brother's death or protect everything his brother died protecting. Uchiha Madara- the leader of the clan who was to be dead a century ago was still alive. Madara was nothing but a power crazed shinobi who wanted to make everything one within himself. He wanted to cast an illusion over the entire world and control it. A world which was fake, which held no seed of hope. A world which would gain peace in disguise. Madara who had told him half the truth about Itachi, the very jerk who had turned him against his home had to die. He had used Itachi and the village for the likes of him. He could not let some monster like him live.

Finally he had broken the curse of hatred that was bestowed upon his clan for years. He now had decided to walk Itachi's path. He told himself he would not let this village or his brother be wasted. He had finally entered the battle field, shocking his former friends-the Konoha 11. Sakura and Shikamaru were shocked by his presence. The rest of them didn't utter a word. It was Naruto who told him that he was pretty late on arriving. It was his best friend who still accepted him, no matter who had turned out to be.

He was a missing nin, an S-class criminal who was wanted internationally after he had disturbed the five kage summit and had killed one of the council members- Danzo, who had ordered his clan's massacre. Later Sakura seemed to give him a smile which said welcome back. He felt like he was reliving the moments of Team 7 while they fought the ten-tailed beast.

Another sigh escaped his mouth. He was consumed with guilt. He had tried to kill Sakura and Naruto twice. He did not understand why they still chase him, why they still believe in him, why they care so much and why they never would give up on him. He desperately need answers. Then he hears a small voice at the back of his mind whispering to him that he is still a part of team 7 and still their friend. He now was sure that he did not deserve their kindness or friendship or their love. He wondered how he would make things right for them, how he would make up for his past actions. He knows how deep a scar of betrayal runs it course in the fragile human heart, breaking it to pieces that would be hard to pick up and make it whole again. He now understood how Sakura and Naruto felt when he left ,betraying them, the village. There was no way he could remove that pain from them but he decided to try and heal it. The wound would take a long time to heal. But the scar of his betrayal and inhuman actions would still remain. No matter how much it killed him now, on the inside , he knew he could never erase that wound of betrayal. That doesn't mean he wouldn't try. They deserved much more but he would start with apologizing first.

The rest of Konoha 11? They had almost given up their lives to retrieve him! Now he realized how important a part he played in his friends life. He had hurt too many people. His sensei was disappointed. His sensei had considered him the favorite of his students. He had let so many down. It was time he made it all up. He could see why his friends were angry with him. They had every right to be mad at him. If he stayed back in the village, his friends would have shouldered his burden, saved him from the path of darkness, at the same time help him get stronger and achieve his goals and would be stuck by him like family and made him happy at the same time.

He never regretted so much in life. But today, he couldn't bring himself to face any of them. The regret was too much. He had walked down the path that just grew darker, a path where the tiniest bit of ray of light would be consumed by darkness, a path that held no way out. He had slipped too deep into the darkness. The tides of vengeance had washed over him and drowned in him the pool of inhuman-ness. He was soo deep that there would be no hand to lift him up.

His life was a shade of grey. Tainted by his past with no signs of a secured future. It was a shade of sorrow, regret, hate, power and anger. He realizes that he had long since closed his eyes and only looked back on the past. It now seemed like a grave mistake. He wished he could have made better choices only if his head wasn't so clouded with vengeance. But now it was all wishful thinking. He had been left with a fist full of fire and heart full of hate.

There was no way a seed of hope would grow on the soil that breed so much of hate. The seed would die before turning to a sap. Love would wither away to dust. How was it even possible for him to make so many mistakes in life? But a part of him was glad that in the end he broke through the darkness and for once he did the right thing. For once he was there to protect the people who had done so much for him. He would never admit it out loud but the Konoha 11 had made a big difference in his life, Sakura and Naruto had broken the cold barrier around his heart and made a spot for themselves in his cold heart. He did not know how they did it. But he was glad .

It was time to repaint his life. Time to take down grey and paint it with colors like red for love, yellow for happiness, orange for passion, green for harmony, blue for stability, purple for dignity and white for purity. The soil of his life needed to be renewed too. He decided that he would grow a seed of hope, a sapling of love, a plant of forgiveness,a tree of stability and a garden of peace. For this he knew he had to dread his soil of life with regret, loyalty , honor and faith. He also knew he needed to water them with belief.

Ego, arrogance, blood lust, vengeance and power was what made the very core of his existence. The five elements that fed him for so long and made his life a darker shade of grey ,had to be washed. And he was already in the process of washing it. He would fill his heart with love, respect, faith, loyalty and dignity. These are the five elements already implanting themselves in the core of his being.

When this was all over, he would definitely bend his head in shame and beg for forgiveness in front of the Hokage, the people of the village and most importantly his friends. At the same time he would make sure his clan, his elder brother were given justice. He was ready to work hard to gain their trust again. This brought a small smile across his face. Now he was thinking rational. He finally felt a feeling of contempt in his heart. Peace was just inches away from him, waiting for him to catch it.

He was dwelling so much in the past that it had made him blind towards the future. It had taken him so long to realize that the past was what he can't erase but that didn't mean he couldn't have a spotless future without bloodying his hands by looking back. It came to his senses that the past was strapped behind an individuals back so as to not see it but to feel it on rare times. What was important was living in the present. If he dreamed of tomorrow , it would be like stealing. His past was something he couldn't go back to. So it was time for him to shut his past in him like the leaves of a book known to him by heart and would only read the titles every time he wanted to feel his past.

He slowly started drifting towards the comfort of slumber. For the first time in his life he was at peace. Sleeping without nightmares. For the world he seemed dead. Hours passed by, the sun slowly made his way towards the horizon. The sky was a blend of red and orange. The earth that seemed dead a few hours back was now bustling with noise and determination. He could see the earth that was stained with the blood of the innocent. Peace was necessary and to attain it, so many had spilled their own blood. It would be a shame if they didn't win the war against Madara!

Finally Sasuke woke up and stood tall. There was only one thought that was running its course in his mind as of now- There are many battles in each era but this would be the last war. As soon as he descended, he saw his friends welcome him with a warm smile. He smiled back at them. Now he knew for sure that he was going to return home, heal them. The feeling of loneliness was long gone. He had people who loved him and cared about him. He wasn't going to let them down. He would die protecting them. It was now his ninja way too! Finally the will of fire burnt in every vein of his body just like how every other leaf ninja had inherited the will of fire! He made his way towards the battle field and stood right next to his friends. And thus the gory horror of battle began!

**_12 YEARS LATER..._**

It was a pleasant morning in the village hidden in the leaf. Ebony haired ANBU captain was walking down the stairs of the large mansion, making his way towards the kitchen to get himself a cup of hot tea. A smile tugged his face when he heard two voices in the kitchen. He came to the dining hall and sat down. The other two in the kitchen had not realized his presence due to their deep involvement in their conversation.

"Can I please go play with Akamaru?" A six year old kid was asking her mother. She was a photocopy of her father. Same ebony hairs, onyx eyes and facial structure. She would be a prodigy just like her father. She had the same personality. Spoke less, gave people the infamous Uchiha death glare.

"You can't. Kiba has a mission. You'll only disturb him and Akamaru!" The mother with pink shoulder length hair was denying her daughter's request while making tea.

"Comon! I won't be a bother! Just for a few mins I'll go play with Aka-chan! " Uchiha Shin was whining to her mother.

"Uh-huh! No is a no!" Uchiha Sakura was denying her daughter.

"I'm going. Like it or not" Shin made a statement. In such authority. Sure her daughter had inherited her father's cockiness and egoism and arrogance and authority.

"You're not going. Period." Sakura wasn't the Uchiha matriarch for nothing! She spoke in the same tone, leveling her daughter with authority . A tone that said you-are-not-going-no-matter-what. Heck! She was the girl's mother. She could see a scowl forming on the little girl's face. _God! Did this child inherit anything from me at all? She even scowls like her father! Speaks like him! Behaves like him! All that ego! Arrogance and pride! Arrgghh! Here I thought she would take after me since she was a girl! _

"Hn" Shin just looked at the tatami floor. Her bangs covering her face making it impossible for a person to read her face. A look of disappointment marred her face. Her eyes spoke of sadness. Sakura just sweat dropped! Did she just 'hn-ed' like her father? She was like the female version of Uchiha Sasuke. Sakura didn't have to look at Shin to see how she felt. She continued with her kitchen work.

Sasuke just sat there and watched the two most important people of his life arguing! He smirked when his lovely wife had spoken in such authority. He was known for making things cut and clear. And now it seemed like his wife and his daughter perfected it too. But of course his little princess couldn't win the argument cuz she was arguing with her mother. Even he didn't win an argument against her!

He glanced at his bundle of joy. She had inherited so much from him. He was damn proud of it much to his wife's displeasure. She was just being a true Uchiha! You can't blame the kid!

"Why the long face?" Sakura asked out of curiosity. While chopping a tomato off.

"Tou-chan is always gone." She spoke in such seriousness and monotone. With an expressionless face! And this was definitely from her father. Sasuke was pleased to hear his daughter speak like an Uchiha. Then he wondered what about him that she was going to complain about.

"He is the ANBU captain. Of course he will be gone since he will have so many missions to go on! " Sakura knew what was bothering the child. She was trying to convince the little kid.

"There are many other ANBUS . He doesn't have to do every mission" Shin was looking out the window, sadness gracing her face.

"Well he is one of the strongest. Others will need his help" She tried reasoning with Shin. But Shin had made a point. Sasuke was barely home these days. She was so going to have a talk with him today. She wondered how happy her daughter would be when she saw Sasuke! Sakura hadn't told her that her daddy dearest had come home yesterday night from his two week long A-rank mission.

"Tch. It feels so lonely here! Without him! Naruto-Oji-san doesn't go anywhere! He's here the whole time with Megumi!" There was hurt and anger in her voice.

"That's because he's the Hokage. He has to stay in the village!" Sakura didn't know how to make this kid understand. But Shin was right. Even she missed Sasuke too much these days! It was like he just came home to eat and sleep.

"Neji-oji-san and Shika-oji-san also don't go out that much for too long" Shin spoke in a matter of fact way. Sakura sighed. She wasn't going to win this argument! She was arguing with the daughter of The Uchiha Sasuke for heaven's sake!

"Baby! I know! I miss tou-chan as much as you do! But the village needs him! He loves you a lot!" Sakura now scooped the little girl in one hand and plate of food in another. The tea was ready too. She came into the dining hall only to see her husband smirking at her.

"Sasuke-kun! When did you come down?" Sakura asked in bewilderment. She now set Shin on one of the chairs and the plate on the table.

"I came down a few mins back" Sakura went over to him and kissed him.

"I'll go get tea! And I'll set the table. You two catch up!" Sakura ruffled her daughter's hair and sprinted into the kitchen.

Shin was inwardly dieing out of happiness when she saw her father. How much she had missed him! But no! She wasn't going to jump her bones and hug him. Sasuke was mildly surprised to see his daughter glaring at him.

"Shin..." Sasuke started slowly. Still no response .

"Food is getting cold. Time for you to eat" Sasuke was eyeing the little girl for some response at least. But none came. Her face was just cold. Sasuke sweat dropped. She was just behaving like him when he was mad.

Sakura was now watching the both of them with a glint in her eyes.

"I'll feed you" Sasuke offered. Still no response. He flinched inwardly. How was he going to please his kid?

After what seemed like a few mins, Shin spoke with venom in her voice.

"I HATE YOU"

Sakura and Sasuke were startled to hear this.

"Shin! What do you think you are talking? That's no way to talk to your father! Only because you are mad at him doesn't mean you blurt out non-sense!" Sakura was fuming! She will not stand anyone who would bad mouth Sasuke!

"Sakura..." Sasuke tried interrupting her. But was cut off by a high pitched voice.

"Why can't I hate him? He was never here! Always gone! Its like he doesn't even care about us!" Shin was now screaming.

"I don't hate you baby!" Sasuke was now sitting next to her, his hands around her little shoulder.

"And I do care! That's why I'm not going anywhere for the next one month!" Shin now looked up at her father, with a small smile. Sasuke could see the tears that were threatening to fall from her eyes. He pulled her into a warm embrace. She cried her eyes out. Sakura was now intently staring at her family.

"I missed you so much!" Shin was still sobbing.

"I know! I'm sorry! " Sakura's jaw dropped down to the ground! Did the UCHIHA SASUKE just apologize? Sure he had said sorry years back when he had betrayed them. That was like a very serious situation. But this! It wasn't something serious! And he chose to say sorry! Sakura only wondered what their child could do to him!

If Naruto saw this, he wouldn't let Sasuke live it down!

"Now that its settled, lets eat!" With that they ate their breakfast. Shin had went upstairs to change so that she could go to the park with her father.

"You seem to be happy" Sakura commented. Intertwining her hands with his.

"I'm" Sasuke had rested his chin over Sakura's head. She had leaned into his chest.

"I'm glad you are ok! Looking back, we have come a long way!"

"I know! I'm glad you stuck with me! I can't ask for anything more! I'm at peace now!" Sasuke whispered.

"Time heals all wounds!" Sakura lifted her face to meet Sasuke's lips. Sasuke returned the kiss.

Sasuke smirked softly. How much ever his past was stained his future was spotless! His present was peaceful! He now believed that in his moments of decision that his destiny was shaped. He had yearned for this peace for a long time! And finally it lingered around him like a protective blanket around him!He sat there, embracing his wife while he waited for his daughter to come down. A real smile marred his face this time!

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**OK! Done!  
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**I don't know how you guys find it!**

**But I really had to get it out of my system! **

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**Ja Ne! **


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